{The Beginning} A Story of a C Section

"Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start!"

Am I the only one who is singing that with Julie Andrews' sweet voice in my head? Probably. But the beginning. the beginning of Lando, the man cub. 

Well, not the very beginning. Obviously, he was made and then I, the brave tribute, gestated him for nine months whilst making lattes and writing papers. Oh my maternal heroics. 

Look! Belly! Baby! 

Lando emerged into the brightly lit world...not by the original delivery path. My firstborne babe arrived via C section. He was the healthiest C section baby there ever was. An APGAR that *just* missed being 10, a vibrant cry, a strong, intense latch--a dream first baby. 

A professional collage for your enjoyment.

My dreamy baby was a C section, that procedure that women fear and pray they'll avoid. There are some who claim that carrying a baby in your body for nine (or less) months, then having your organs cut and (even removed!) from your body, so that your sweet babe can emerge is less of a birth than a babe who slides down the birth canal.

They're wrong. Most of us know that. But still, C section stigma remains. 

Having a C section made my child's birth a healthy, empowering experience for me mentally, physically, and emotionally. The best part? It saved his sweet life after too-intense contractions began to lower his precious heart rate. 

I'm thankful to be a mama who gave birth via C section. I'm thankful to be a person who was born via C section. It doesn't make me less of a mother, nor my baby less of a baby. It just means that medical intervention saved my child's life. 

My C section experience was excellent. The anesthesiologist talked me through the whole procedure and my husband was right beside me. I got to hear, feel, and visualize my child entering the world. He was placed on my chest a minute after he was born, and the bonding began. Recovery was one of the most precious experiences for our family yet. Lando lay on me, learning to nurse, while my husband sat next to me and sent out messages that our son was officially in the world. I can't think of a more magical way to spend the first hour of my child's life. It was truly a blessing.

So, in honor of C section awareness month, I tell our story. The story of a C section, the best birth he could have had.